This guest post by our partner Zentail highlights what makes Jet.com so unique, and how you can start selling on Jet with the help of Zentail, a SkuVault channel management partner.
In case you haven’t heard, there’s a new marketplace on the block, and it has the potential to be huge. We’re talking about Jet.com, a Costco-style shopping club that launched in July with a whopping $225 million in funding.
Why You Should Care About Jet.com
Jet.com is the brainchild of Marc Lore who, prior to founding Jet, sold Quidsi (parent of Diapers.com) to Amazon.com for $545m in 2010. Lore left Amazon in 2013 with a wealth of knowledge surrounding the dynamics that make Amazon's marketplace so powerful, yet vulnerable to a disruptive business model.0% Commissions: Jet.com starts by charging 0% commissions to marketplace sellers, electing to allow sellers to pass on savings to Jet members (customers). Since Amazon's marketplace commission is ~15%, you can expect prices to be as much as 15% cheaper on Jet -- a compelling value proposition for shoppers.
Smart Cart: Jet leverages a proprietary "Smart Cart" technology that dynamically adjusts prices based on what is already in your cart, unlocking additional savings when items shipping from the same warehouse are purchased together. Smart Cart factors in warehouse proximity to more closely estimate shipping charges, steering shoppers towards products that ship cost effectively from warehouses nearby. With an average order value over $100, Smart Cart is already proving to be a compelling online shopping innovation.
Lower Competition: Jet.com does not plan on competing with marketplace sellers. The only product category that Jet sells direct is consumer staples such as detergent, paper towels, diapers -- the things most shoppers need to get into their car and drive to Walmart to purchase. What's more, since many marketplace sellers are still evaluating the opportunity to sell on Jet.com, there's currently far less competition relative to other marketplaces.
Extra Savings: Customers can save an extra ~2.5% at checkout by paying debit instead of credit. As part of the Jet.com Rules Engine, sellers can offer additional discounts when the customer waives the right to return the items they are purchasing. With [Jet Anywhere](https://jet.com/anywhere), customers can earn JetCash by shopping at a number of affiliate websites including Nike (20% JetCash) and Levi's (11.5% JetCash).
Own Your Customer: Jet offers a special feature that allows sellers to offer an additional discount at checkout in exchange for the customer's email address. You are also allowed to market to your customers through messaging on your packing slips.
Massive Advertising Budget: Jet charges a $49.99 annual membership fee to shoppers and guarantees savings or refunds the difference. This model requires scale to work, and the company aims to generate $20B in GMV by 2020. With $65 million earmarked for national advertising from launch through January 2016, the company is reported to be in talks to raise "hundreds of millions" in additional funding at a $2B to $3B valuation.
How To Start Selling On Jet.com
So, how can you start selling on Jet.com? The first step is to apply to be a Jet Partner. Once approved, you need to either integrate directly via API or you can use a third party service such as ChannelAdvisor, CommerceHub, or Zentail.
Integrating via API is technically intensive as it requires developer resources for the initial integration as well as ongoing maintenance. Understandably, this leaves a lot of high caliber merchants looking for other options.
SkuVault customers need not worry. Zentail has partnered with SkuVault to make it easy to sell on Jet.com and a growing number of channels.
SkuVault & Zentail
Zentail is a simple yet powerful inventory and order management platform that centralizes and automates your multi-channel operations. With Zentail, you can manage your catalog, inventory, and orders (including picking and shipping) without jumping between multiple programs and marketplace portals. Like SkuVault, Zentail Commerce was founded by former multi-channel merchants and technologists who understand the pain points and nuances of online retail.
Committed to providing excellent customer service, Zentail focuses on easy-to-use software that requires minimal training. Seamlessly sync inventory, catalog, and order data between your channels and SkuVault.
If you're looking to sell on Jet.com, grow sales, and achieve remarkable efficiency, click here to experience the power of SkuVault + Zentail.
